Some Malpractice Cases Should Qualify As Crimes

July 7, 1985

EXPECT IT TO happen only in the military -- a physician charged with the legal equivalent of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the deaths of four of his patients. In cases of alleged medical malpractice, such criminal charges are extremely rare.

A Navy board of general court-martial formally charged Dr. Donal M. Billig with ``culpable negligence`` for bungling heart surgery. He also was charged with 28 counts of dereliction of duty for performing open-heart surgery without the presence of another cardiothoracic surgeon as required.

The case presents an incredible story of another type of bungling -- bureaucratic bungling.

The Navy acknowledges that Billig was recruited despite the fact that his credentials had been called into question by a hospital in Monmouth, N.J., in 1980. Billig surrendered his New Jersy state license in 1981 when the state`s board of Medical Examiners began investigating the matter.

Nevertheless, Billig was recruited into the Navy in late 1982, given the rank of commander and assigned to Bethesda, the Navy`s premier hospital, in January 1983. Only during the court-martial investigation did the Navy discover that Billig`s vision was seriously impaired, with the corrected vision in his right eye being no better than 20/400.

In addition, 10 other Navy officers are facing or have already received disciplinary sanctions for their involvement in the recruitment or supervision of Billig.

Could gross negligence in the medical field happen outside of the military? Of course. Courts across the nation are choked with malpractice claims.

But could a civilian doctor face the criminal charge of involuntary manslaughter if malpractice leads directly to death? Not in Florida or most other states where involuntary manslaughter laws apply only to automobile fatality cases.

That`s a shame, because when death results from gross malpractice, somebody should face criminal punishment.